1. Which work are you particularly proud of? Which work best represents your style or approach?
I think the piece I’m most proud of so far in my career are the Wes Anderson movie titles I created for his new film Moonrise Kingdom. This project came along at just the right moment for me—when I felt like I learned just enough about typeface design to not make something completely embarrassing, but not so far in my type design career that I lost a lot of the quirkiness of my lettering work (I hope it never goes away but I know over time I’ll naturally refine and »correct« my lettering quirks).
Attending the Type @ Cooper program really changed my perception of typeface design and I learned so much in a very short amount of time. I think if I had been awarded the project a year earlier the results wouldn’t have been a quarter as good as they ended up. As far as which work best represents my style or approach, that’s a bit harder to nail down. I tend to work in styles that are either very very illustrative such as the OXFAM campaign I was a part of this year, or less illustrative calligraphic script lettering.
2. What inspires you?
Too many things to count. Since I graduated college I’ve always had a group of very motivated friends that are a constant source of inspiration. Surrounding yourself with positive hard-working people is incredibly motivating. I’m inspired tremendously by the letters I receive from students telling me that my work made them want to pursue lettering or that something I said or did helped get them out of a creative rut. When all else fails, a good cup of coffee, a long walk alone, or a really good meal usually helps too.
3. The theme of this year’s TYPO Berlin is »Sustain«. Sustainability seems to have evolved into a »buzzword« in the last couple of years, with which agencies and companies aim to fulfill a desire for stability and values. Can you name a project in which this ambition has led to concrete, exemplary design solutions?
While I don’t really think of myself as being someone that makes »sustainable« work — I’m not an industrial designer nor do I end up having much control over what kind of papers and products my images end up on, I do strive to create work that isn’t overly trendy, work that will last and feel at home on a product five or ten years from now as it does today.
Jessica Hische
Jessica Hische is a letterer and illustrator best known for her personal projects Daily Drop Cap and the Should I Work for Free? flowchart. Just five years out of college, she’s been named one of Print Magazine’s New Visual Artists and an ADC Young Gun, one of Forbes 30 under 30 in Art and Design, and currently serves on the TDC board of Directors. She has been profiled in many publications, has traveled the world speaking about lettering and illustration, and has probably consumed enough coffee to power a small nation.
4. TYPO Berlin 2012: What are you especially looking forward to?
I’ve heard endless praise for all of the TYPO conferences so I’m looking forward to everything! It will be my first time in Germany, so it will be fun to visit the land that lent me my last name and I’m positive I’ll be planning my move to Berlin by the end of it. The speaker line-up looks amazing and I can’t wait to connect with everyone and really just absorb the whole event.
5. Required reading/watching: What are currently your favorite interesting/beautiful publications, books, movies and/or links?
I’m probably not the best source for interesting / beautiful publications and movies — my media consumption tends to skew to the »guilty pleasure« side, especially because I often work to movies and television. If you do, however, want some recommendations for terribly wonderful television and movies, ask me at the conference. I’m terrifically under-read but am hoping to change that this year by tackling some literature classics as well as some design theory classics.
